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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26970199">We'll be our Usual Selves</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/PositiveAtoZ/pseuds/PositiveAtoZ'>PositiveAtoZ</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Friendship, Gen, a to z boys being silly, again stream date plan a to z, happy (belated) birthday niki! (i'm a week late i know), it wasn't supposed to be that way but my brain told me to write it so they're in there, oh there are also chiakao crumbs in here, title references date plan lyrics</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:47:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,707</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26970199</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/PositiveAtoZ/pseuds/PositiveAtoZ</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It seems there are still some surprises left for Niki's birthday.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>We'll be our Usual Selves</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>shoutout to eli and elliot for betaing! please enjoy this short fic with the A to Z Boys!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So far, Niki Shiina was having a great birthday. Rinne won big at the pachinko parlor today, allowing Niki’s wallet to remain intact for another day. Kohaku gifted him some delicious Japanese sweets; Niki had a sneaking suspicion that these were probably amongst Kohaku’s favorites, not that the younger boy would openly admit it. Himeru had been thoughtful enough to remember Niki’s prior complaint about needing a new frying pan and bought him a newer model. </p><p> </p><p>There were also the surprise visits from Ibara and a member of Valkyrie. He was taken aback by the vice president’s presence; sure, Ibara was technically his boss and also attended his cooking lessons, but he really didn’t think Ibara would bother to attend his birthday celebration (after all, being the vice president and an idol had to be busy work). There was also the heterochromic boy from Valkyrie who had left a gift then ran out; Niki felt bad because he couldn’t remember his name but was grateful for the present.</p><p> </p><p>Currently, Niki was playing Anzu’s odd game that was prepared specifically for him. It involved choosing a box of food from a random idol, then recreating the meal after eating it. The first box was a simple chicken soup from Hiiro, which wasn’t too difficult to remake. The second box contained a meat dish from Natsume; from what he thought of Natsume, he found the meat dish to be uncharacteristic of the mysterious magician, but assumed the meal was chosen with Niki’s tastes in mind.</p><p> </p><p>The third box… the third box horrified Niki. At first glance, he had believed someone was attempting to poison him; the cake looked <em> that </em>grotesque. However, Anzu reassured the birthday boy, stating that Ritsu's pastries tended to look unsightly, but were actually appetizing. With this knowledge, Niki gave the cake a chance and found himself delighted that Anzu was telling the truth. Although, when it came time to replicate Ritsu’s cake, the cook was unable to imitate its appearance.</p><p> </p><p>The last box had bread and only bread in it. Niki was puzzled as to why it was only bread, to which Anzu explained, “Mitsuru-kun was really insistent on helping out, but the only food he could think up at the time was bread. It was a really simple request, but I couldn’t turn him down.” Niki could only smile at her explanation; he had come to befriend Mitsuru during his time working on the first ES Joint Project and was thrilled to know another bread lover (although in Niki’s case, he just loved all kinds of food).</p><p> </p><p>“Actually, there was supposed to be one more box for the game,” Anzu started, “But I didn’t receive it this morning, so I assumed he backed out.”</p><p> </p><p>“Eh?” Niki had stopped his preparations for the bread, “I could’ve had one more box of food?” Anzu only nodded in response.</p><p> </p><p>“Ahhh, I already got so much today, but it feels sad to know I missed out on one more meal~” Niki pouted.</p><p> </p><p>“Do not worry, Shiina! The last box has arrived ☆,” a boisterous voice cut through the air, accompanied by the loud slam of the door. Niki and Anzu redirected their attention to the new visitors.</p><p> </p><p>“Excuse us~ Moricchi, you shouldn’t have opened the door with a bang,” Kaoru walked in behind Chiaki, carrying two boxes with him. One looked reminiscent of a bakery’s pastry box with the other was a simple takeout box stacked on top. </p><p> </p><p>“Sorry, sorry. I was hoping we would get here in time- and looks like we did,” Chiaki sighed in relief, shooting a grin towards Kaoru, who rolled his eyes. Kaoru approached the counter Niki was baking at and placed the boxes down in front of him.</p><p> </p><p>“Nahaha, don’t worry about it. I’m just glad to know I have more food to eat,” Niki eyed the boxes with delight. He went to open the takeout box, but was stopped by Chiaki.</p><p> </p><p>“Before you indulge in the gifts we brought… Kaoru, would you like to say something?” Kaoru flinched at Chiaki’s question. The blond first gave the brunette a stink eye, but then softened his expression.</p><p> </p><p>“Anzu-chan came to me with her idea for your birthday and asked if I wanted to participate. I felt the need to give back after causing you some trouble during our time making date plans,” Kaoru began to explain, “So I handmade a meal for you and planned to give it to Anzu-chan this morning but…” He side eyed Chiaki, nonverbally directing him to continue. The brunette picked up on this cue and described his side of the story.</p><p> </p><p>“Right! I intercepted a passing Hakaze this morning and questioned him about the box. He explained the story to me and felt the need to also join the festivities. That’s why he was unable to get the box to you this morning,” Chiaki scratched the back of his head, looking quite guilty, “I’m sorry for my part in making Hakaze late.” He bowed his head towards Niki, as a form of apology.</p><p> </p><p>“Eh?! N-no need to do that kind of thing, Morisawa-kun. I’m just glad both of you showed up- and with more food too! Now can I open the box?” Niki pleaded. Chiaki and Kaoru shared a quick glance with each other, then nodded their heads in unison. Niki, ecstatic at the confirmation, grabbed and opened the takeout box first. Once opened, a small cloud of steam blew into Niki’s face; he was then greeted by golden-brown shoestring french fries. </p><p> </p><p>“French fries?” Niki looked up to the two Yumenosaki graduates for an answer.</p><p> </p><p>“Hahaha~ quite a delicious snack isn’t it?” Chiaki sent a beaming smile to Niki, “It isn’t anything fancy, but I’m entrusting my favorite food to you, Shiina.” Niki returned Chiaki’s smile, then set his sights on the pastry box.</p><p> </p><p>“So is Hakaze-kun’s favorite food in the other box?” Kaoru turned pink and looked to the side, while Niki ate some of the french fries.</p><p> </p><p>“A good observation, Shiina! Come here so I can call you a good boy,” Chiaki walked around the counter to approach Niki, opening his arms for a hug.</p><p> </p><p>“Gyah! Not now, Morisawa-kun! Let me enjoy my gifts first,” Niki whined. He quickly grabbed the pastry box and opened it before Chiaki could envelop him in a hug. </p><p> </p><p>Niki opened the pastry box and was left speechless. Inside was a stack of approximately four pancakes, looking quite fluffy and thick. The top was delicately drizzled with maple syrup and blueberries and strawberries encircled a melted square of butter. He could only look at the present in awe, to the point where it looked as though he had stars in his eyes.</p><p> </p><p>“Uwahh~ this looks amazing! I almost don’t want to eat it because of how incredible it looks… but food is food so into my stomach it goes,” Niki set the box down and went off to grab a butter knife and fork, “Ah, but wait… Hakaze-kun, you made this? I’m surprised; you don’t really come off as someone good at housework.” Kaoru’s blush only deepened at this remark.</p><p> </p><p>“A guy gets some points with girls if they know how to cook and do housework ya know…,” Kaoru explained, bringing his hand to the side of his face, as though it would quell his embarrassment, “Of course, I learned that impressing someone requires a lot more effort than the basics.” Chiaki, surprised to hear those words, returned his attention to Kaoru, went back to his side, then engulfed him in the hug that was meant for Niki.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m moved, Hakaze! I still remember the times where you would rather run than interact with boys in a friendly manner hahaha☆” Chiaki started rubbing Kaoru’s hair, at the same time, bringing the blonde closer to him by wrapping his other arm around the increasingly flustered boy. </p><p> </p><p>“Moricchi, you’re too close for comfort! This is definitely not something I want to do with a guy!” Kaoru tried prying himself out of Chiaki’s grasp to no avail, while the brunette continued to smother the other with physical affection. Seeing that this conversation was likely over, Niki went ahead and began to cut the pancake. The grey-haired celebrant was so absorbed in getting the meal into his stomach that he didn’t notice the door opening once more, although this time, it wasn’t as loud.</p><p> </p><p>“Looks like we’re aren’t late to the paRTY,” another voice chimed, as Niki stuffed himself with pancakes. He looked up to see Natsume and Mitsuru entering the room.</p><p> </p><p>“Shiina-senpai! Did you like the bread I gave you?” Mitsuru dashed up to Niki and looked at the meal he was eating, “Ohhh, this looks amazing, did you make it?” Niki shook his head, then pointed his fork towards Kaoru, who was still stuck in Chiaki’s embrace. Natsume eyed his upperclassmen suspiciously before a sly smile made its way onto his lips.</p><p> </p><p>“Do you mIND turning down the PDA? Mitsuru-kun is still young, you kNOW,” Natsume teased, taking a seat next to Niki and Mitsuru. Kaoru and Chiaki turned towards Natsume in surprise, with Chiaki loosening his grip just enough for Kaoru to slip away.</p><p> </p><p>“Huh?! What do you mean PDA? You know I’m not interested in guys like that,” Kaoru spluttered, while Chiaki was uncharacteristically quiet; in fact, his face sported a pout.</p><p> </p><p>“But I thought you and Morisawa-senpai were dating?” Mitsuru noted, remembering Natsume’s words from the night they had followed Chiaki and Kaoru into Thyme Street.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah, Sakasaki-kun told us the day we went together to the french restaurant,” Niki added after swallowing another piece of pancake. This comment caused Kaoru to return to his flustered self, shouting denial after denial, despite finding himself in Chiaki’s arms again. Natsume fired back with further ribbing, leaving behind a confused Mitsuru and Niki; the birthday boy ended up sharing the pancakes Kaoru made with Mitsuru as they watched the banter unfold. </p><p> </p><p>From the sidelines, Anzu watched the five idols interact with each other. She had been worried about the success of the ES’s first joint department plan, but after seeing these four attend Niki’s birthday, Anzu was glad to see that their time as a shuffle unit created an amicable relationship amongst them.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>omg i was supposed to finish this by niki's bday but school is taking a lot of my time and also i'm crippled by my fear of writing characters ooc. feel free to leave kudos and comments it would put a smile on my face.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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